The Most Precious of Things
by Samswimmer
Summary: After Lennie has conversations with hallucinations, George talks with him and then shoots him. But what if George never shot Lennie. What if he lost his nerve and let him go? Alternate Ending. First Fic. Rated T for character death. Oneshot.


A/N: As the summary says, this is an alternate ending, so make sure you have the right mindset. Takes place after Lennie's imaginery comversations with his Aunt Clara and the giant rabbit. Rated T for character death. Oneshot. Made for an english essay, so I thought, 'what the heck, I'll put it up.'

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The Most Precious of Things

q§-§-§p

George came quietly out of the brush and the rabbit scuttled quietly back into Lennie's brain.

George walked up to Lennie, grim acceptance in his eyes. Unfortunately for Lennie, he knew what he had to do. George began to talk to Lennie. He talked to Lennie about all the wonderful things they would do when they got the nice little place.

"We'll have a cow," said George. "An' we'll have maybe a pig an' chickens… an' down the flat we'll have a… little piece alfalfa—"

"For the rabbits," Lennie shouted.

"For the rabbits," George repeated.

"And I get to tend the rabbits."

"An' you get to tend the rabbits."

Lennie giggled with happiness. "An' live on the fatta the lan'."

"Yes."

Lennie turned his head.

"No, Lennie. Look out like you can almost see it."

Lennie didn't see his gun, but he could hear the sound of dogs and men approaching quickly. He took off as fast as he could, and as George aimed Carlson's luger at him, he lost his resolve. His hands quaking, George dropped the gun on the ground and ran. Not toward Lennie, and not toward the other men. George ran, because e knew there was nothing more he could do for Lennie, and he knew what Curley would do if he found out George let Lennie get away.

Lennie was terrified. He didn't know where George was, he didn't know where to go, and he knew that the dogs he heard were not ones he could enjoy petting. So he kept running. He ran until he saw what he had talked about so many times, but had never contemplated he might have to use. A cave in the side of a hill was what he set his sights on. Lennie went into the cave.

"I did a bad thing," Lennie mumbled to himself.

"I did a bad thing, an' now George won't want me. He'll tell me to… to get the hell away from him. He won't want me. I'll just live up hear. I can jus' live in this cave an', an' eat… whatever there is to eat," Lennie mumbled. "An' I can jus' hide here, 'cause ain't nobody gonna want me now. George don't want me no more, 'cause I did a bad thing," Lennie rambled on. "I did a bad thing. I di'n't want no trouble. I did a bad thing."

Lennie continued in his misery, repeating his only his form of an apology to the air. The damp walls offered him no solace as his wallowed in his misery.

q§-§-§p

Whit saw, or more accurately heard, Lennie when he took off from George. Being much larger, he made more noise and a much bigger trail to follow. Whit picked up the luger and gave it to Carlson, then went ahead to find out where Lennie had gone.

"The damn bastard did steel it!" Carlson said angrily.

Slim calmly addressed Carlson, "Then why did he drop it?"

"How should he know? That fella' weren't right in the head to begin with," Curley shot at Slim, malice evident in his tone.

Whit came back and told the others that he saw Lennie go into a cave. "He jus' went in and kep' mutterin' 'bout how he 'done a bad thing'," he reported.

"Mind what you do to him Curley," Slim said sternly, "nothing is more precious than life, and you should take care not to waste it."

q§-§-§p

George was running, and as he fled, his mind turned to Lennie. How could he abandon him? He had left Lennie defenseless in the wild with a mob after his life. Soon, his guilt overtook him. He turned and ran straight back where he had come from. When George had almost arrived where he and Lennie had parted, he heard speaking.

"How should he know? That fella' weren't right in the head to begin with," Curley shot at Slim, malice evident in his tone. It was obvious that this fella' was Lennie.

Whit came back and told the others that he saw Lennie go into a cave. "He jus' went in and kep' mutterin' 'bout how he 'done a bad thing'," he reported.

George followed them, trying all the while to drown out the voices that prophesied doom to Lennie, both from the angry men, and his own inner demons haunting him.

'You failed him; abandoned him to death. Betrayer, how can anyone ever trust you again? You just sent your only companion to hell, and now you chasing after him. All you'll find is more hell. He's finished, you killed him. You killed him… you killed him…' the mocking voices receded back into whatever foul part of his subconscious they came from as Curley's mob, and George with them, arrived at the cave Whit had seen Lennie enter.

q§-§-§p

"I didn't want no trouble. I did a bad thing. I did a bad thing," Lennie still carried on and on in the darkness. His monotonous moaning remained unbroken until he heard a noise outside his shelter.

"George?" Lennie called in a hushed tone, beseeching his friend to come and rescue him from all his troubles. When he built up his courage to look outside, he saw lying in the field a large hare.

"Come here, little rabbit! I ain't got no alfalfa, but if you let me tend you, I'll bring you lots a' alfalfa every day." He said calmly as he approached the hare. It darted off, and Lennie shouted as he ran toward it.

"Now don't do that! Don't do that! Don't go running!" he shouted as he ran out of his shelter.

q§-§-§p

Curley had his gun in his good hand, aiming at the cave, when he saw a hare hop up into the field in front of the cave. Carlson put his gun down and watched curiously, but Curley kept his aim true.

"George?" Lennie called in a hushed tone, pleading from the darkness for his friend to help him.

"Come here, little rabbit! I ain't got no alfalfa, but if you let me tend you, I'll bring you lots a' alfalfa every day." He said calmly as he approached the hare. It darted off, and Lennie shouted as he ran toward it.

"Now don't do that! Don't do that! Don't go running!" he shouted as he ran out of his shelter.

Curley aimed for his head, intending to end his enemy once and for all.

q§-§-§p

George was watching and waiting. He believed Lennie to be safe as long as he stayed in the cave. Who in their right mind would walk into the darkness with a beast like Lennie on the inside, frightened and cornered? Then George saw it, the thing he knew would be the final blow for Lennie.

A hare had settled into the grass near the mouth of the cave.

"George?" Lennie called out desperately, and it rent George's heart and conscious to pieces.

"Come here, little rabbit! I ain't got no alfalfa, but if you let me tend you, I'll bring you lots a' alfalfa every day." He said calmly as he approached the hare. It darted off, and Lennie shouted as he ran toward it.

"Now don't do that! Don't do that! Don't go running!" he shouted as he ran out of his shelter.

In one last effort to save his friend, George gave away his position by yelling at the top of his lungs. "Lennie, don't!"

But it was too late.

The report was as loud as thunder.

There was a long, silent pause.

Lennie looked at George, shock and confusion mingled with the tears welling in his eyes.

Then Lennie fell.

The giant of a man collapsed onto the ground where he had been shot. Curley smirked and walked over.

"Finally got that son of a bitch," Curley said softly, breaking the silence.

George stared helplessly.

Slim watched Lennie's body with grim acceptance. "The most precious of things," he said softly.

Whit and Carlson exchanged looks of remorse.

And a rabbit came over and began to eat the grass at Lennie's side.

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A/N: I don't own any of the characters in this fic or the story "Of Mice and Men", those belong to John Steinbeck. Please Review, you should have already read if you're down here.


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